The contactless (“tagless”) bus fare payment service uses Bluetooth wireless communication between beacons installed on vehicles and passenger smartphones to determine whether they are getting on or off the bus. This system has been operating on buses in the Korean capital region since 2021.

To use the service, passengers install a tagless pay app on their smartphones and register pre-paid and post-paid transit cards, which are automatically processed and debited without the need to “tag” a transit card terminal when boarding or exiting the bus.

Before a passenger exits the bus, they can tap the app’s “Mobile Stop Bell” button to alert the driver that a passenger wants to exit the bus, eliminating the need to manually ring a stop bell or get up from their seat.

A tagless sticker on the exterior of the vehicle informs passengers if the bus is tagless-enabled before boarding, and an icon is displayed in the geolocation service of the Gyeonggi Bus Information App also indicates whether the bus is tagless-enabled.

When traveling on or transferring between buses or trains that do not offer this service, you can still tap (“tag”) your card on the terminal to pay fares and receive transfer discounts.

“We plan to implement the service in Yongin and Uijeongbu and expand it to other regions from the second half of this year,” said Yoon Tae-wan, Director of the Bus Policy Division of Gyeonggi Province. “We also plan to introduce a safe ride home service that sends tagless payment information to parents.”

The company supporting this service, EZL Co., Ltd., is running a promotional event for the tagless system, offering a KRW 300 discount per ride with no limit on the number of rides, as well as a 100% discount for the first tagless payment, and prize draws proportional to the number of payments.

Detailed information can be found through the ‘Tagless Pay-App.’ Other inquiries can be directed to the EZL Call Center (1644-0006).

BCCIE promotes the curriculum of BC educational institutions around the world and works with the BC government to host various events and activities related to international education.

The Gyeonggi representatives discussed various educational programs of the Gyeonggi Future Education Paju Campus, including visits by BC students, as well as various educational cooperation measures for students in the province, including student exchanges and visits to institutions, aimed at the future promotion of the Gyeonggi Youth Ladder Program in Canada.

On the day of their visit, BCCIE officials proposed exchange and cooperation projects such as participation in the BC International Education Conference in June and joining the University Mobility in Asia-Pacific (UMAP) project in Gyeonggi Province.

“Today’s discussion is part of the Action Plan signed between Gyeonggi Province and British Columbia last May, and we will continue to discuss joint proposals through the formation and operation of inter-institutional working groups. We hope that this meeting will further deepen the understanding and friendship between the two regions,” said Park Keon-Kyun, Director General of the Continuing Education Office of Gyeonggi Province.

“We are pleased to have the opportunity to build on the sisterhood we established in 2008,” said Randall Martin, BCCIE Executive Director. “We look forward to discussing the many ways in which we can strengthen educational cooperation between Gyeonggi and BC to better serve students in both countries.”

Since signing their sisterhood agreement in 2008, Gyeonggi Province and BC have signed four action plans for cooperation in the fields of economy, education, culture, disaster prevention and safety, and climate change mitigation. They have actively engaged in exchanges through such initiatives such as the dispatch of Gyeonggi government officials to BC, participation in partnership events, and the signing of policy exchange agreements in the field of transportation.
 

Through to April 19, Gyeonggi Province is recruiting companies to participate in the “2024 Gyeonggi Carbon Border Tax Response Consultation,” and will hold related training and briefing sessions at the Gyeonggi Regional SMEs and Startups Agency on April 26 and 29.

The CBAM is a type of trade tariff imposed by the EU on imported products with high associated carbon emissions. It was piloted in October last year and, from this year, companies exporting to the EU will have to report carbon emissions by product on a quarterly basis. It applies to companies exporting steel, cement, electricity, fertilizer, aluminum, hydrogen and more to the EU.

Until 2025, there is only an emissions reporting obligation, but from 2026, emissions verification as well as the purchase and submission of CBAM certificates will be required. Accordingly, advance preparation is essential for exporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and proactive responses are required not only from producers of the six major items currently monitored, but also from SMEs related to organic chemicals and plastic items that will become subject to monitoring.

The “2024 Gyeonggi Carbon Border Tax Response Consultation” prepared by Gyeonggi Province is divided into Type A (capacity building) and Type B (countermeasures for the six major CBAM industries) so as to support the type of CBAM application.

In addition, the “Visiting Pre-diagnosis Service for Carbon Neutrality Responses,” being implemented for the first time this year, will visit SMEs that have insufficient time and information to adapt to the CBAM. This service will determine response levels and provide information on related support projects as well as domestic and international trends free of charge throughout the year in order to improve CBAM awareness and response capabilities among SMEs in Gyeonggi Province.

Training sessions on SME ESG supply chain management, regulatory responses, and CBAM trends and responses for SMEs will be held on April 26 and 29. Training and briefing sessions on Carbon Border Tax responses will be held both online and offline by region throughout the year. For more information and to register, please visit the Gyeonggi FTA Center website at ggfta.or.kr.

Last year, Gyeonggi Province and the Gyeonggi FTA Center supported a total of 625 companies with training and briefings on “Carbon Border Tax and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Management,” providing advice on carbon emission calculations to help SMEs in Gyeonggi Province proactively respond to changes in global carbon regulations.

“There is an urgent need for SMEs in Gyeonggi Province to prepare practical responses to emerging international changes in the trading environment, such as carbon border tax and ESG… We will actively support them to become carbon-competitive by providing timely information and close consultation so as to gain an edge in the global carbon market,” said Lee Min-woo, Director of the Investment and Trade Division of Gyeonggi Province.

In addition to FTA consulting, the Gyeonggi FTA Center also provides FTA/trade education and briefings, online platform entry support, as well as CPNP and Halal certification, and export consultations on non-tariff barriers, and operates global supply chain (GVC) support projects. For more information on related initiatives, please contact the Gyeonggi FTA Center at 1688-4684.
 

This year, in addition to the existing K-Beauty Expo in Taiwan, a new K-Beauty Expo will be held in Vietnam, a country where recognition and demand for K-beauty products is high.

Recruitment targets cosmetics SMEs that have at least one of their headquarters, production facilities or research centers situated in Gyeonggi Province. The province will support those participating in the Expo with discounts on event participation fees, transportation costs, and interpretation fees.

In order to provide more value to participating companies, the Expo will feature export consultation sessions with local buyers, as well as a variety of programs and export market development support measures, including support for entering Taiwan’s online retail network and one-stop support from KOTRA’s export support platform.

“At last year’s K-Beauty Expos in Taiwan and Indonesia, 114 cosmetics SMEs participated and secured export contracts valued at KRW 6.67 billion… This year’s K-Beauty Expos in Taiwan and Vietnam will also offer various support programs to help [participating SMEs] achieve good results, and we hope that cosmetics SMEs in the province will be interested in participating,” said Han Tae-sung, Director of the Bio Industry Division of Gyeonggi Province.

K-Beauty Expo Taiwan will run from August 16 to 19 with registration open until May 31 (https://tw.k-beautyexpo.co.kr/fairDash.do). K-Beauty Expo Vietnam will be held from November 7 to 9 with registration open until August 30 (https://saigonbeautyshow.com/fairDash.do).

For more information, please contact the Kintex Global Business Team at 031-995-8845 (Taiwan), 031-995-8847 (Vietnam).

Gyeonggi Province, through the Gyeonggi Research Institute, undertook a three-month study from November last year on the feasibility as well as economic and social effects of attracting the immigration office to Gyeonggi Province and announced the results on March 24.

According to the analysis, the economic impact of hosting the immigration office in Gyeonggi Province would be between KRW 182.1 billion and KRW 515.2 billion in output, KRW 219 billion and KRW 353 billion in value added, and 1,477 to 4,198 people employed, depending on the type of facilities. The greatest impact is anticipated if the center is established as a control tower that encompasses all migration-related functions.

The report also determined that Gyeonggi Province has several advantages over other regions in attracting the immigration office.

Gyeonggi Province is home to the nation’s largest foreign-born population, about 660,000 as of December 2023, making it a natural test bed for various immigration policies, the report said.

In addition, the provincial government said that Gyeonggi is a strong candidate for hosting the immigration office due to several factors: its transportation infrastructure, including Incheon International Airport, Incheon Port, and Gimpo International Airport; high work efficiency due to its proximity to the Ministry of Justice, other ministries, and the presidential office; the presence of the largest number of immigration and foreigner-related organizations among local governments; and high policy acceptance among local residents due to its ongoing multicultural city policies.

A total of six cities in Gyeonggi Province have announced their intention to vie for the immigration office: Ansan City, Gimpo City, Goyang City, Hwaseong City, Gwangmyeong City, and Dongducheon City. According to the characteristics of each city and county, various attraction activities are being pursued, such as forming special organizations, holding discussions, and submitting proposals to the Ministry of Justice.

To attract the immigration office, each region is promoting its unique characteristics and growth potential: Ansan City has designated a special zone for multicultural villages and established a support center for foreign residents; Gimpo City has the potential to develop into an international city and offers amenities and housing; Goyang City has an extensive transportation network and urban infrastructure; Hwaseong City has the potential to grow as a location for large and high-tech companies; Gwangmyeong City has access to transportation such as the KTX and is located at the center of a dense foreign population; and Dongducheon City has a multicultural environment as an area with unreturned U.S. military facilities.

“Gyeonggi Province has a high concentration of permanent foreign residents as well as short-term rotational foreign workers and seasonal workers, so it can serve as a testing ground for various immigration policies through the establishment of an immigration office… We will actively promote the establishment of an immigration office in Gyeonggi Province by holding discussions to build consensus among Gyeonggi residents and making recommendations to the central government,” said Kum Chul-wan, Director General of the Labor Bureau of Gyeonggi Province.

Meanwhile, on March 7, the Mayors Association of Gyeonggi Province submitted a “Joint Request for the Establishment of an Immigration and Naturalization Service Agency in Gyeonggi Province” to the Office of the President, the Office of the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Ministry of Justice.

These interpretation and translation services are available not only to parents and children of multicultural families, but also to educational organizations in the province that require translations of correspondence for distribution.

The interpretation and translation services are provided in seven languages – Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Mongolian, Russian, and English – in cooperation with family centers and multicultural family support centers in 30 cities and counties of Gyeonggi Province (excluding Gwacheon City).

Services can be requested at any time throughout the year by calling or emailing one’s local family center or multicultural family support center.

Among Korean local autonomies, Gyeonggi Province is home to the largest number of multicultural students (6-17 years old), so the services are expected to see more use this year after handling 5,383 requests last year.

“We recommend that educational institutions such as schools, kindergartens, and day care centers use the services in the new semester when there are many notifications… I hope there will be smooth communication between children from multicultural families, parents and educational institutions,” said Kim Mi-seong, Director General of the Women and Family Bureau of Gyeonggi Province.

On March 11, Governor Kim met with Secretary General Gino Van Begin at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Complex and said, “It is very unfortunate that the Korean government has been regressive rather than proactive in responding to the climate crisis, but Gyeonggi Province is taking a bold and active role in addressing climate change… It is very encouraging to have you here. I hope we can engage in more activities together as a result of this visit.”

Governor Kim also announced that Gyeonggi Province will join the 100% Renewables Cities and Regions global RE100 campaign and encourage its 31 cities and counties to join. This campaign was launched by ICLEI to encourage local governments around the world to transition to 100% renewable energy at the city/region level. Governor Kim also requested ICLEI’s cooperation in inviting global climate technology companies to the Climate Technology Industry Exhibition that Gyeonggi Province will host later this year.

“Gyeonggi Province’s ambitious response to climate change, the Gyeonggi RE100 vision, is setting an example not only in Korea but also internationally,” said Secretary General Gino Van Begin. “We are honored to have Governor Kim as a member of the ICLEI World Executive Board representing East Asia. I hope he will join us at the World Congress in Brazil this June to share his commitment and achievements with the international community.”

ICLEI is an international organization that was officially launched in 1990 at the World Conference of Local Governments at the United Nations Headquarters. Its official name is the International Council of Local Governments for Sustainability.

It works with more than 2,500 local governments in 125 countries around the world to strengthen the capacity of local governments to implement sustainable development policies and to promote international exchange. The organization is headquartered in Germany and has offices in 13 countries, including Korea. In Korea, 57 local governments, including Gyeonggi Province, Suwon City and Gwangmyeong City, are members of the organization.

Governor Kim is the Executive Chairman of ICLEI Korea and the representative of the East Asia region on the World Executive Council. Gyeonggi Province hosted the ICLEI Korea office at KINTEX in Goyang City in April 2023, and is actively engaging with local governments around the world to share strategies for addressing issues in various fields such as sustainable development, carbon neutrality, and biodiversity.

The honorary ambassadors consist of 20 foreign residents speaking 17 languages from 16 countries (Nepal, Mongolia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Japan, China, Cambodia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Thailand, and Hong Kong) who live in 12 cities/counties of Gyeonggi Province, including Goyang-Gimpo, Namyangju, Bucheon, Siheung, Ansan, Yangju, Uiju, Paju, Pyeongtaek, Pocheon, and Hwaseong. They were selected based on their Korean language proficiency, social contributions, social media utilization, and leadership.

The honorary ambassadors will work for two years, from March this year to June next year, to build a disaster safety net for foreign residents and integrate them into local communities. Their main roles include timely delivery of emergency disaster texts, distribution of disaster safety prevention news, delivery of information on change of residence status, provision of information on initial life adaptation, and cooperation on specialized materials and work related to foreign residents.

The honorary ambassadors – who are naturalized citizens, married immigrants, international students, migrant workers, and refugees – are involved in research, education, translation and interpretation, and social organization activities. Gyeonggi Province expects that these appointments will help foreign residents who have settled the local communities to engage in activities that have a practical impact on their lives, contribute to disaster prevention and safety, and expand communication with foreign communities.

In March last year, Gyeonggi Province launched a pilot program to promote disaster safety among foreign residents by appointing 20 honorary ambassadors for migrant safety culture. The program received positive feedback from foreign residents who previously had difficulty accessing disaster information, as they could easily access disaster prevention safety information and answers to their questions in their own language.

In recognition of its success, the project also received an encouragement award at the “2023 Best Practice Contest for Local Government Support for Foreign Residents” organized by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, among 39 cases of support for foreign residents undertaken by local governments nationwide.

Recognizing the need to more actively implement the pilot project and expand its scope, Gyeonggi Province revised the relevant ordinance last year so as to lay the groundwork for the appointment of honorary ambassadors for foreign residents.

“We will strive to ensure that foreign residents of Gyeonggi Province can live safely and soundly in disaster situations as well as in everyday life… Gyeonggi Province will take the lead in overcoming crises by respecting and harmonizing with foreign residents at a time when the issues of population decline and an aging population are growing,” said Kang Hee-joong, Director of the Foreigner Policy Division of Gyeonggi Province.

For more information, please contact the Gyeonggi Human Rights Support Center (031-492-9347), which oversees the Gyeonggi Foreign Resident Honorary Ambassador Program.

In accordance with the revision of the “Gyeonggi Ordinance on Menstrual Product Support for Women and Adolescents” in October last year, starting this year, support for the purchase of menstrual products will be provided to foreign adolescent females registered in Gyeonggi Province and Korean adolescent females of foreign nationality with reported domestic residence.

The program will provide support to more than 223,000 female adolescents born between 2006 and 2013 (including 4,500 foreigners) in 21 cities and counties of Gyeonggi Province. Last year, Gyeonggi Province and 22 municipalities of the province jointly promoted the program; as of December 2023, more than 174,000 female adolescents in the province had received support.

The Adolescent Menstrual Product Support Project was launched in 2021 by Gyeonggi Province, the first metropolitan government in the country to do so. It ensures the right to health for adolescent females by providing local currency to each municipality to support the purchase of menstrual products by individuals to the amount of KRW 13,000 per month and up to KRW 156,000 per year.

The local currency subsidy can only be used to purchase menstrual products at convenience stores (CU, GS25, 7-Eleven, E-Mart 24) in the municipality of the beneficiary’s residence. The subsidy must be used by December 31, 2024, and any unused amount will be automatically forfeited.

Those interested in receiving this support can apply online via the Gyeonggi Citizen 24 website (gg24.gg.go.kr). The first application period of the year runs from March 11 to April 19 (application dates may vary by city and county). In-person applications can be made from March 11 to November 15 at the administrative welfare centers for the applicant’s place of residence. The adolescents themselves, their guardians, or their primary caregivers can apply.

However, applicants for the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’s project to provide menstrual vouchers to women and adolescents who are recipients of the Basic Livelihood Security, the next lowest legal class, and single-parent family households may not apply for overlapping support.

The “Master Plan for Fire Safety Innovation for Foreigners,” the nation’s first comprehensive plan for fire safety for foreigners, was promoted by the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters after a fire broke out in an apartment building in Ansan City on March 27 last year, killing four foreign (Nigerian) children.

To prevent fires, the Ministry of Labor and Employment installed fire extinguishers and smoke detectors in 16,947 workplaces with foreign workers and 1,898 households with foreign residents, and fire safety inspections were conducted at 150 workplaces by the Ministry to maintain fire and evacuation facilities and eliminate hazards.

The Ansan Multicultural Village Special Zone, where many foreigners are concentrated, was designated as a “Fire Prevention Enhancement District” to further strengthen fire safety inspections, education and training. In addition, 10 types of disasters that are closely related to the lives of foreigners, such as factory fires, building collapses and isolation, were selected and 50,000 leaflets of “Action Tips for Each Type of Disaster” were produced in five languages, including English, Chinese and Vietnamese, for distribution at facilities used by foreigners.

To establish a rapid response system, the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters improved the 119 situation management system so that firefighters can receive information immediately when a fire is reported at foreign worker accommodations. In addition, it established a “Multicultural Specialized Fire Brigade” consisting of 17 members from 10 countries, including Vietnam and Pakistan, to conduct fire safety education for foreigners by region.

Gyeonggi also focused on creating a culture of safety among foreigners.

The Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters launched the “Foreigner 119 Youth Group,” consisting of 170 foreign youths, to establish a fire safety culture, as well as the “Global Safety 119 Instructor Group,” selecting 20 foreign instructors to provide continuous disaster safety education to foreigners. Last year, nine foreign teams participated in the 12th Gyeonggi CPR Competition for the first time. The Gyeonggi National Safety Experience Center in Osan City provided experiential safety training to more than 2,300 foreigners.

As a result of these efforts, overall fire safety awareness among foreigners has also improved. A fire safety awareness survey was conducted among foreign workers living in Gyeonggi Province, comparing the results of a survey conducted in March last year (1,318 respondents), before the master plan was implemented, with the results of a survey conducted in December (1,137 respondents), after the master plan was implemented. The results showed that the average level of awareness in five areas – how to report an emergency, how to evacuate, how to use a fire extinguisher, familiarity with CPR, and how to use a fire hydrant – improved by about 10%, from 3.3 to 3.6 points. For reference, “very much so” carried a score of 5 and “not so much so” a score of 1.

As a result of the effectiveness of the master plan, Gyeonggi Province has been recognized as an excellent region in the Ministry of the Interior and Security’s safety index for six consecutive years.

“We have taken the lead in improving various systems, such as enacting an ordinance on fire safety support for foreign residents and recommending that the government designate temporary buildings, which are often used as housing for foreign workers, as special firefighting targets… We will create a Gyeonggi-do that is true to the basic spirit that safety transcends borders and race,” said Cho Jong-ho, Commissioner of the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters.

As of the end of last year, Gyeonggi Province was home to 655,062 foreigners, the highest number among the local autonomies of the country.